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Affinities. Placed by Auguste de St. Hilaire and Decandolle between 

 Myrtaceae, to which they appeal to me to have little affinity, and Passifloreae, 

 to which they are so closely allied, that they scarcely differ, except in their mo- 

 nopetalous corolla, sinuous stamens, diclinous flowers, and exalbuminous seeds, 

 the habit of both being exactly the same. By the former of these two writers 

 a very particular account of the structure of the order has been given in the 

 JWLemoires du Museum. He adopts the opinion of Jussieu, that the apparent 

 corolla of these plants is really a calyx, considering the apparent calyx to be 

 merely certain external appendages. This view I cannot follow, any more 

 than the notion of Passifloreae being apetalous : however ingenious the reason- 

 ing may be upon which such theories are founded, they appear to me to be 

 overstrained, and entirely at variance with both analogy and actual structure. 

 In discussing the affinities of the order, which he does much at length, he re- 

 marks, that Carica (now the type of the order Papayaceae) should be ex- 

 cluded ; that the tendrils of Cucurbitaceae are transformed stipules, but scarce- 

 ly analogous to the stipulae of Passifloreae ; that there is an affinity between 

 the order and Campanulacea^ manifested in the perigynous insertion of the 

 stamens, the inferior ovarium, the single style with several stigmas, the quinary 

 division of the flower connected with the ternary division of the fruit, and, 

 finally, some analogy in the nature of the floral envelopes. He, however, 

 chiefly insists upon their affinity with Onagrariae, with which, including Com- 

 bretaceae, they agree in their definite perigynous stamens, single st3 r le, exalbu- 

 minous seeds, fleshy fruit, and occasionally in the diclinous flowers and climb- 

 ing stem, being connected in the latter point of view with Onagrariae through 

 Gronovia, a climbing genus of that order. He also points out the further con- 

 nexion that exists between Cucurbitaceae and Onagrariae through Loaseae, 

 which, with an undoubted affinity to the latter, have all the habit of the former. 

 With regard to the supposed affinity of Cucurbitaceae to Myrtaceae, this is 

 founded upon the characters of a small group, called Nandhirobe^, consist- 

 ing of plants having the habit of Cucurbitaceae, but some resemblance in the 

 form of their fruit to that of Lecythideae, which, as is well known, border close- 

 ly upon Myrtaceae : but beyond this resemblance in the fruit, which appears to 

 be altogether a structure of analogy rather than of affinity, I find nothing to 

 confirm the approachment. Indeed, I agree with Decandolle in estimating 

 Nandhirobeae no higher than a mere section of Cucurbitaceae. 



Geography. Natives of hot countries in both hemispheres, chiefly within 

 the tropics ; a few are found to the north in Europe and North America, and 

 several are natives of the Cape of Good Hope. India appears- to be their 

 favourite station. 



Properties. One of the most useful orders in the vegetable kingdom, 

 comprehending the Melon, the Cucumber, the Choco, and the various species 

 of Gourd, all useful as the food of man. A bitter laxative quality perhaps per- 

 vades all these, which in the Colocynth gourd, is so concentrated as to become 

 an active purgative principle. The Colocynth of the shops is prepared from 

 the pulp of Cue umis Colocyn this : it is of so drastic and irritating a nature as 

 to be classed by Orfila among his poisons ; but, according to Thunberg, the 

 gourd is rendered perfectly mild at the Cape of Good Hope, by being properly 

 pickled. Jlinslie, 1. 85. The bitter resinous matter in which the active prin- 

 ciples of Colocjmth are supposed to exist, is called by chemists Colocynthin. 

 A waxy substance is secreted by the surface of the fruit of Benincasacerifera. 

 It is produced in the most abundance at the time of its ripening. Delile 

 Descript. The leaf of Feuillea cordifolia is asserted by M. Drapiez to be a 

 powerful antidote against vegetable poisons. Ed. P. J. 4. 221. The fruit of 

 Trichosanthes palmata, pounded small and intimately blended with warm 

 cocoa-nut oil, is considered a valuable application in India for cleaning and 



